Pingcheng Site is located along the area from Datong Station westward to Chen Village, north of Datong City, Shanxi Province.
Pingcheng was originally the capital city of the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534), the ancient political, military and cultural center of northern China.
With its back to Fangshan Mountain in the north near the Great Wall, the city was divided into three parts — the palace, outer city and middle city. The middle city covers an area of 16 kilometers in length; the ruins in the north, east of Shanghuang Village and north of Baimacheng Village are believed to be the remains of the northern wall. At the site, huge stone-column bases stand in an orderly fashion. A large number of brick and tile fragments were unearthed near Datong Station, which indicates the palace’s location. Over 60 grand constructions were built outside the palace, including Tianwen Hall, Tianhua Hall, Ziji Hall, East Hall, West Hall and Wanshou Hall.
Along Fangshan Mountain to the north of the city is a huge cemetery with such constructions as the Yonggu Mausoleum, the Yonggu Stone Room, the Dining Hall, the Stone Statue, the Lingquan Hall, the Lingquan Pool and the Grotto Temple.
(Source: chinaculture.org)
